Norway

NJ->Norway->NYC singer/songwriter Okay Kaya (aka Kaya Wilkins) released this little gem on YouTube last season, and it was deservedly touted by my Christmas-music-blogger-in-arms Christmas-A-GoGo. Her voice is beautiful, yet with a mournful quality, and the message, while not your typical cheery Christmas romp, is most certainly relatable. My favorite line is, “I want to talk, I want to talk, I don’t want to talk, I want to talk loud and confidently.” There is something refreshing to the honesty found in the struggle embedded in the lyrics. I don’t think I’m far off-base to say that a quick glance at the central premise of this song might lead a listener to quickly dismiss it (as I think it would be terrible as either the pop-punk or twee song I imagined in my head), the line “All I want for Christmas is therapy,” threatens to be both trite and precious in equal parts, but Okay Kaya does a wonderful job to fully develop this song into a beautiful and complicated view of the other side of Christmas.

Bottom Line: Okay Kaya built upon a concept that I was almost reflexively suspicious of, and made me a believer.

How about some country music from Norway? Because that makes total sense right? Everything makes sense right now! Well, actually Norway, Sweden and the like have long had a healthy Americana/Country scene. The folks over at Checkpoint Charlie Audio Productions (CCAP) gathered four Norwegian country bands (The Brigade, Helldorado, Flying Shoes and the Tramps), and each band chose two songs by prominent country and americana bands and songwriters. Songs featured on this release were originally recorded by the Handsome Family, Willie Nelson, John Denver, Jackson Browne, John Prine, The Band, Buck Owens, Chris Hillman and Glen Campbell. Those are some big names indeed, though my favorite is perhaps the smallest name (Handsome Family). That said, I am having a tough time singling out specific tracks to feature, because truly, the quality level is high enough on each of these tracks. The entire release is certainly worth your time. For extra credit, check out The Brigade’s Beyond Christmas Day EP from 2014.

Bottom Line: These Norwegians really love this country music, and it comes through.

If you know me at all, or read this blog, you know I have a particular affinity for Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, etc. To top it off, I also have a particular love for indiepop, as well as the Shelflife label. Thus, when I saw that Norwegian singer-songwriter Dylan Mondegreen had a Christmas-ish song, “The Ghost of Christmas Past,” on his new album, Every Little Step, I jumped in and gave it an immediate listen. While these are not going be big name checks that everyone will be familiar with (unless you read this blog), I found this particular track to share equal parts Pelle Carlberg and Jens Lekman. Dylan has a quality to his voice that matches quite well with Pelle, and the flute flourishes felt like the Bacharach-influenced tracks of Night Falls on Kortedala-era Jens Lekman. The songwriting is also very clever; It’s a song about visiting yourself as the ghost of Christmas past, and realizing that you’d do it over again. Certainly worth a listen!

The Swedish indie-supergroup Sunturns put out a fantastic Christmas record a few years ago, simply titled Christmas and released on CD (and digital) to the delight of the masses (of underground Christmas fans). Comprised of members of Making Marks, Moddi (had previously made a mix of mine), The Little Hands Of Asphalt (ditto), Psyence Fiction, Monzano and Einar Stray Orchestra, these are some Norwegian pop heavyweights. The album was packed with great songs, including my personal favorite, “Looks Like Styrofoam.” Now… would this be considered a cover if it was recorded earlier by Little Hands of Asphalt, if the person singing it was indeed… also Sjur Lyseid, aka Little Hands of Asphalt? Chicken? Egg? I’ve gone crosseyed.

Enough! Let’s talk about this NEW record! Christmas II is upon us! Being released by Fika Recordings, those Christmas-loving folks in the UK. They normally spend their time releasing records by CU favorites the Wave Pictures & their associates (god I love the Wave Pictures), but somehow they found some time in their day to release this lovely Norwegian pop Christmas record! 10 new songs and a Ramones cover!

Now, I know you are asking, “I have all this money hanging around in my pocket and I want to throw it at something… what should I do?” Here’s the scoop. There are 300 copies of this baby on red and white vinyl, presently available from Fika Recordings (Bandcamp), Norman Records, Amazon UK, Amazon DE and in the US… Jigsaw Records (Coming Dec. 4!). It not only includes this new record, Christmas II, but also the classic Christmas! For folks that are financially-challenged, such as myself, you may want to opt for the cheaper, download-only version. You can find these at all the links above, but I strongly encourage the Bandcamp option, as the artist gets paid more and you get a FLAC.

You know what… I haven’t even talked about the songs yet! Sunturns has released 2 tracks ahead of the proper album release on December 4. I honestly have already spent enough energy talking about the record, that I haven’t much more left for these fabulous songs. “Would You” reminds me of the best parts of The Stars… the layered vocals, the rising music, the drama. Beautiful. “The Axis Tilt” is a wonderful piece of songwriting, and that voice has to be Sjur Lyseid, right? He’s got a way with a turn of phrase, and boy can he work in some basic physics into a song!

Bottom Line: Buy it early and often. But perhaps not for $43 from Fika shipped to the US… shop around. If you’re looking for a value, Norman Records is your best bet at the moment. 🙂 5/5

LISTEN

I love the rabbit hole that is Soundcloud. If I find a song I like, I’ll explore all the playlists that its been added to, in the hopes that the listener has equally good taste as that particular selection. At some point, this journey led me to Short Skirts, a fantastic garage rock band from Norway. “Christmas Depends on You” brings in Ida Horpestad from Blomst on vocals, and her touch really brings this garage/surf Christmas song to the next level. The lyrics are fantastic – I really don’t want to ruin them for you before you listen. To top off an already great song… they are offering it as a free (WAV) download on Soundcloud.

Bottom Line: This song is good enough to be covered for years to come. 5/5

Released in Norway back in 2001, this EP is a solid little piece of indie Christmas. Two tracks are of particular note (and they can be previewed at the Norwegian website where you can download it), the John Prine classic “Christmas in Prison,” performed by Cinnamoon, and Peru You’s “Real Maria.”

The Oslo-based Cinnamoon cover “Christmas in Prison” with a great, full-band, folk treatment, that has just enough banjo to make you really take note of (and enjoy) – and before it was fashionable. I think they made some wonderful decisions with the arrangement – nothing seems out of place, and while they didn’t reinvent the song, they certainly improved upon it.

Also a Norwegian band, Peru You’s “Real Maria” sounds like something that Vampire Weekend could really tear up on a Christmas single. The vaguely Caribbean feel of the instrumentation, the interesting phrasing and the lyrical bobs and weaves really make this a great track. You need to hunt this down.

I can’t bring myself to write about every single song, so I shall end it there, with the two best. Additionally, I am certainly fascinated by the fact that I can find out very, very little about these two bands… who have no doubt broken up in the over ten years that its been since this release. I thought I could find every answer on the internet… or at least a long-abandoned myspace page…

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